Here is a picture David Cameron wants you to keep in mind. It shows Ed Miliband with the Conservative Party’s "arme secrète" at the next election. David Cameron will be meeting François Hollande at a Franco-British summit in London at the end of the month. It promises to be a sticky affair. The French are furious at the Prime Minister for making disobliging remarks about the state of the French economy. They are never happy when the Anglo-Saxons pronounce on the problems of their country, and their anger has been stoked by Newsweek’s “The Fall of France” article, which has provoked a torrent of indignation. But they particularly don’t like to hear criticisms from other governments, not least close rivals.

Yet France is a country in crisis – economic, political and social. The news is unrelentingly grim. The markets have downgraded the French economy, it has fallen further into recession, unemployment particularly among the young and immigrants is high and intractable, its debt burden is reaching unsustainable levels, French politics is an influence-peddling racket, its media largely ditto, and the country’s best talent is fleeing to London and elsewhere, while those who remain are sunk in a slough of despair.

By rights we should not intrude into the private grief of our historic partner in the Entente Cordiale. The bonds between the two countries are family-tight. We need France to be a confident, successful neighbour. But politics is a tough old trade, and the moment Ed Miliband decided he would embrace Mr Hollande on his election in 2012 he took a risk. At the time, it was possible to argue – just – that the new French president represented a Europe-wide revolt against the failings policies of austerity. Back then the Labour leader welcomed Mr Hollande by saying: "This new leadership is sorely needed as Europe seeks to escape from austerity … He has shown that the centre-Left can offer hope and win elections with a vision of a better, more equal and just world."

Unfortunately for him every word has turned out to be wrong. Austerity is what has rescued the UK, while France is without hope, and its vision is going to cost it power at every level. Will he find time to pose for another picture with his friend? No10 certainly hopes so. I gather they will be seizing every opportunity to draw our attention to what happens when socialists are in charge. “Just 24 miles off our coast we can see another way of doing things, and how wrong it’s gone. Ed Miliband could not have tied himself more closely to Francois Hollande,” a member of Team Dave says. They are hoping that for Labour, it’s a relationship that will prove to be an “Entente Fatale”.